A BOYFRIEND "driven by jealousy and anger" murdered his vulnerable young girlfriend with a sustained beating after she refused to give him the password to her Facebook account, the Old Bailey heard today.
Kane Boyce, 34, beat and kicked Paula Newman's head in New Addington in the early hours of November 12, 2013, causing her an "irreparable brain injury which brought about her death", a jury was told.
Boyce, of Aviemore Close, Beckenham, denies murder, but admitted the manslaughter of his 20-year-old girlfriend of seven months on July 7 last year.
He initially told police Ms Newman's injuries were caused when she threw herself from his BMW, but when he admitted the lesser charge he said she had hit her head on a wall after he pushed her.
Prosecutor Gillian Etherton QC told the jury Boyce had become obsessed with getting access to one of her two Facebook accounts in the weeks before her death as he was suspicious she was using the website to message other men.
Boyce allegedly told a friend he had asked for her log in details, but said "she won't give it over to me for love nor money".
He also said to his friend: "I knew she was f**king cheating on me, lying cheating s**g", the court heard.
Paula confided in a friend that she "felt like a prisoner", and wanted to leave Boyce and move back to her mother's house, said Ms Etherton.
Witnesses at the scene of the alleged attack, on Elmside, in the Fieldway area of New Addington said they had heard a woman screaming and a man shouting at around 1am.
One witness, Luke Smith, said he heard a man say "if you don't log on, we'll see what happens", while a female voice refused, crying and upset.
He also heard Boyce's car, with personalised number plate K77ANE, loudly rev and speed off, it was said.
Another resident told police she had heard "muffled shouting, arguing, crying and screaming", while one lady, who has since passed away, told police she heard "memorable, piercing screams".
Ms Etherton said Boyce later took Ms Newman to a friend's house in Dunsfold Way, New Addington.
He told his friend Paula had suffered a fit after she jumped out of his car when he asked for her Facebook password.
When his friend suggested calling an ambulance, Kane refused, saying "no, no, no, she's got bruises", according to Ms Etherton.
Friends noticed Paula's face was "out and swollen including her lips and nose, she had scratches on her face and a bruise on her back which looked like a fist mark".
Boyce finally called an ambulance at 7.20am, but as paramedics, who could not find a pulse, worked to save her Ms Newman's life, Boyce left to begin cleaning up evidence of the attack, it was alleged.
He left the house with a rubbish bag, after earlier returning to Elmside to pick up Ms Newman's coat and shoe which had been left at the scene of the alleged attack, said Ms Etherton.
"The defendant drove to a dead-end road where he threw the bag over a fence. He then drove on and threw one of his trainers into a wheelie bin. He got back in the car and drove on again, and threw the other trainer over a different fence," she said.
The prosecution also allege Boyce earlier took Ms Newman's phone and accessed her Facebook profile and Zoosk online dating profile as paramedics tried in vain to save her.
Just three days after Ms Newman's death, Boyce changed his Facebook relationship status from "in a relationship" to "single", Ms Etherton said.
She also told the jury that Boyce "has the ability to charm women", but had behaved in a "cruel and sadistic" way in the past.
"He is capable of being highly manipulative, very controlling and extremely violent to previous partners," she said.
"Previous attack on different partners include repeated serious violence, such as punching and kicking to the head and body.
"The women he has attacked over the years have often been too terrified of further attacks to either report the defendant's violence to the police or having reported it have later refused to proceed further."
Boyce denies murder. The trial continues.
